Down This Road
by ElasticBobaTurtle
Summary: She loves these boys, and they love her. This is the road they have chosen, and they will see it through. Team 7.
1. Orange Sky

It is days like these that make her smile.

Naruto is bursting with orange fire, like always, cracking his perverted jokes that only an experienced peeping tom would find funny. Sakura finds herself smiling, more at his broad smile and stark blue eyes than anything else, because frankly, she thinks his humor could use a little more practice.

Sasuke has on the secretive smirk that he slips cleverly beneath his lips. It's almost as if he doesn't want anyone else to see that small upward quirk, because it's something ridiculously precious he can't afford to lose. It says a lot of things, more than any of the words his rough mouth could ever shape.

Kakashi is leaned up against a tree, reading in the shade, seemingly unaware of the chaos known as Team 7. But she notices; in the small moments when he looks up with a brief warmth in that lone black eye before turning back to the flapping orange book. She notices, but she won't tell him, because she knows he's sensitive about these kinds of things.

She feels happy like this. These interactions are ordinary and routine, yes. But today, for some reason, the sky seems so far away and close, all at once. There's a kind of distance and nearness to these people that Sakura can't define. Something buzzing deep inside as she socks Naruto in the stomach for making a particularly crude remark, something indescribably warm as she screams at him in a very unladylike fashion.

She's grateful for this. She's grateful that there is this establishment between them, this small latticework she can call her own. Everywhere else, there might be pretenses, and everywhere else she might need to worry about how to act and what to say, but with these boys she feels at home in herself. She can fall, and she knows they'll be there to catch her without question or hesitance.

She's so happy that when Naruto asks her if she'll go with him for ramen tonight, she says yes, and not grudgingly. And when Naruto calls to Sasuke and asks if he'll join and Sasuke grunts (but with the smirk still on) and starts walking after them with his hands shoved deep in his pockets, Sakura can't help the smile that breaks out on her face.

And when Kakashi invites himself along, padding after with his head still buried in his book (but she catches the brief glimpse), Sakura thinks that her heart might explode from joy.

She loves these boys, and they love her.

Walking down this dusty road with the orange sky holding her close, Sakura knows there might be regrets left behind. She knows that there will be tears (mostly her own), and maybe even bitterness; but right now those things seem small and far away, things of a dream. Right now she can let herself laugh and she can let them be themselves. They don't need to force any smiles. They don't need to force love. They can be, and it will come naturally.

_Just live._

* * *

Team 7 still makes me smile in the end. :)


	2. Gentle Rain

It is on one of those lazy D-rank missions, the ones they will miss when they grow old (if they make it to that time; she hopes they will), when it happens.

They'd been walking down the road home, Naruto griping loudly about constipated old ladies and their snobby cats and why were they always stuck with dumb missions like these? Sakura had just been about to yell at him to shut up for what must have been the forty-third time that day when the thunder rumbles, swallowing her words. Sasuke lifts his morose gaze from the ground and peers into the distance, where large roils of dark clouds are fast approaching. Kakashi looks up briefly from Icha Icha Paradise to observe the graying sky.

"Looks like a thunderstorm," he muses, and then quickly re-submerges himself behind the orange-bound cover.

Sakura snorts. "Yes, Kakashi-sensei, thank you for pointing out the obvious." Her eyes scan the forest area; they are still several miles from Konoha, and she can feel the moisture beginning to gather in the air. "Shouldn't we take cover?"

Kakashi gestures vaguely from the world of pornographic fantasy. "A little rain never hurt a shinobi. We're almost there, anyways."

Sakura sighs. Typical of Kakashi—too lazy to take any course of action if it didn't involve dirty literature of some sort. But she supposes he is right, in a way. A little rain won't hurt. She shuffles forward a few steps. Suddenly, a blinding flash of lightning illuminates the clearing and a resounding boom follows, thrumming through her bones. Sakura jumps at the sound, barely containing a high-pitched shriek as she clutches a hand to her fast-beating heart.

Then the rain comes.

Sakura blinks dazedly as the rain begins to rush at a sharp crack of thunder, soaking her clothes in a matter of minutes. Kakashi looks up at the sky in a most unperturbed manner, his silver hair starting to droop from the water droplets collecting at the fine ends.

"Well," he says, after a moment. "That was weird." He puts away his book to keep it from getting wet and looks around at the rest of the team.

Sasuke stands glaring at the ground, looking slightly uncomfortable as the rain runs down his wide shirt collar. Sakura stands glaring at Kakashi in an _I told you so _sort of way, which Kakashi chooses to cheerfully ignore. As for Naruto...

Where _did_ the boy go?

An ecstatic whoop a few yards away informs Kakashi of the fox's location. Naruto comes bounding back to them in his already muddy orange suit, his face a picture of the storm, all wild and released.

"Whoo, this is great!" Naruto yells, throwing his arms up and exposing his neck to the sky. He opens his mouth to let the rain fall in, and drinks like he hasn't drunk in a thousand years.

Sakura rolls her eyes, setting her hands pointedly on her hips. "That's disgusting, Naruto. Don't you know how _dirty_ that water is?" (But in reality she's tempted to follow his example: _what does it taste like, to make you look that way?_)

Naruto only gargles the water louder, spinning around in dozens of drunken circles. He looks like Lee under the influence, only not so deadly and a lot less graceful. "Wheee!" he screams, laughing, a true child.

Sakura claps a hand to her forehead in an act of exasperation. "Naruto, you really haven't grown up at all, have you?"

But Naruto doesn't hear, or isn't listening, and she supposes that it's fine either way. She doesn't want Naruto grown up. She wants him to stay this way, dancing in the purest rain, even if the rest of them change and break into ugly things. She doesn't like seeing him hurt and jaded, because the world needs a sun like him that won't change; something that will shine always when everything else is slowly darkening and her dreams are falling apart. But she knows deep down that Naruto will probably be the first to break from the way he is so free, the way he so openly embraces everything. She casts a glance in Sasuke's direction. He is watching Naruto with a peculiar expression on his face, and she could almost believe that he was thinking the same thoughts from the way his eyes look soft in this rain.

The dust at their feet quickly turns to mud that squishes beneath their feet as they walk. Naruto prances around in inane circles and Sakura pretends to be annoyed (but she really is enjoying this, though she can't understand _why_). Sasuke gives Naruto a death glare when Naruto splashes mud on his pants and scuttles away, laughing maniacally.

"Dobe," he mutters, but Sakura sees a kind of wild, wistful look underlying, like Sasuke wants to break free and run around like a dobe himself. But it costs too much for Sasuke. He doesn't have the liberty to do those kinds of things, and he is always reminded by the red sleeping in his eyes and blood.

The cold running down her skin breaks out in goose bumps, and she shivers a little. Inner Sakura curses her clan for its bad choice in cold-weather attire and the sky for being decidedly mischievous. For a moment, she stops walking to shudder in the rain, drawing her arms around herself. Her eyes close and she breathes out slowly.

_Cold…_

A deep voice sounds near her ear, startling her. "Don't lag behind," he says as he passes by, and Sakura feels the brief snatch of warmth as his body draws close; and then it fades just as quickly. Her eyes open and she blinks at the red-and-white symbol emblazoned on his back.

His words may sound cold and flat to the rest of the world, but Sakura knows what he means. It's his way of saying, "don't catch a cold," or, "I want to go home, too." It's taken her a while to learn this language of his, but she is catching on as time progresses. She hopes one day she'll fully understand (more than his language, but his heart).

"R-right," she stutters, and quickly catches up with the rest of her team, suppressing a dual smile and shiver. Kakashi bestows one of his crinkly crescent-eyed smiles on her, and Sakura feels it's her duty to scowl back.

Squelching with the luxurious mud between her toes and frizz in her hair, Sakura listens as Naruto screams all the way home. They meet the gates with the storm-drunken Naruto in tow, and standing there, just about to enter—Sakura feels she has truly found her place. This town is where she belongs. These people are her flowers. Everything around her will help her to grow. Pain is a mixed fertilizer, and she will use it strongly, wisely.

She can't imagine what life will be like ten years from now. What new names will be inscribed on the memorial? How much older will Kakashi's smile grow? Where will they be?

In the sky, she prays, touching their dreams.

She doesn't know what the gray gates are saying to her now, but she can hear Naruto's brave cries a million miles away, and see the boy floundering in Sasuke's eyes, and feel the promise Kakashi is determined to live.

She tastes the rain on her lips, sweet.

* * *

Um, so this has turned into a collection of Team 7 related drabble-stuffs. Related? Maybe, I don't know. It's all based on whim :) Anyways, going to use this to experiment with styles and such. 


	3. Summer Love

trying a slightly different style, influenced a lot by the fics I've been reading lately.

* * *

Summer for Team 7 had fallen into comfortable routine. Each morning the team members arose, conducted their morning rituals (Naruto slurping down his breakfast medley of instant ramen and expired milk, Sakura preening briefly before the mirror, Sasuke rolling his lunchtime rice-balls), and met at the bridge at 7 am (or in Kakashi's case around 8:45; 8:30 if he was feeling kind). 

After the customary shouts of "YOU'RE LATE!" that left Kakashi's ears ringing for a good minute, followed by whatever outlandish excuse he managed to fabricate that morning, Kakashi and the team squabbled their way to the training grounds. They trained through the morning until noon, taking a short lunch break at which Naruto would plop down contentedly beside Sakura, who merely deigned him an exasperated (but secretly fond) look before inching closer towards Sasuke. Training resumed until around 6 pm, at which Kakashi would dismiss them with a wave of his hand and a nod of his head as he disappeared in a puff of smoke, already immersed in the latest edition of _Icha Icha Paradise_.

Naruto would let out a loud whoop of glee as he charged towards the ramen stand, shouting for Sakura-chan to join him. Before, Sakura would merely "humph" and turn to Sasuke-kun, inquiring if he would please like to walk her home this evening; but she'd gotten over that phase by now, and increasingly often would accompany Naruto to Ichiraku. Surprisingly enough, Sasuke began to attend these get-togethers, though grudgingly – mumbling something along the lines of running out of tomatoes at home.

Today's training had run later then usual, as Kakashi had introduced a new jutsu and both Sasuke and Naruto were determined to master it by the end of the day, preferably before the other. Of course, neither could, but that didn't mean they wouldn't be stubborn boys and try anyways (or die in the process, snorted Inner Sakura).

And Sakura certainly wouldn't be shown up by the boys again – she was done with that era of her life. One day the boys would be looking at _her _back, she swore, and Inner Sakura enthusiastically agreed.

So by the end of the day, the three lay sprawled and sweaty in an area of the training grounds that receded into a large field of soft grass. All three were beaming and exhausted (though Sasuke's expression was more of a pleased scowl). Naruto sighed loudly, hands crossed behind his head in a cushion.

Sakura stared up at the sky as dusk began to fall. She could see traces of stars beginning to glimmer in the distance; they really had trained hard today. Her muscles were sore and she ached all over, but there was a smile tugging at her lips as a feeling of calm settled over the team. It was an unnamed feeling that reminded Sakura faintly of returning home after a long and weary journey.

The dusky orange of the setting sun set a bright cast on their faces. Sakura turned to look at Naruto, who was grinning so broadly that his eyes squinted up; and he looked so much like a whiskered fox that she couldn't help the little smile that uncurled on her lips. Sasuke was to her left, dark bangs partially obscuring his eyes; but she could see a little glimpse of the black and caught a picture of soul reflected there.

She could feel Kakashi's calm and strangely comforting presence somewhere behind them.

Her eyes fluttered close and she let out a small sigh. Moments like these were rare; between all the fighting and stupid testosterone-driven rivalry, tears, regrets, fear, rejected feelings, these quiet instances of contentment were far and wide in between.

And there was a sadness as she realized that that was all they were; instances, moments, snapshots. There for a breath and gone the next. She couldn't hold them in her hand, keep them from floating away. Even her heart was a temporary box.

Something queasy squeezed her gut and she curled a little into herself, screwing her eyes shut. When would be the next time they'd enjoy this kind of moment, this peace together? Would there even _be _another…?

She couldn't be sure. With Sasuke's unquenchable thirst for revenge and Naruto's implausible (but growing less implausible by the day) aspiration to become Hokage, would there ever be room for this kind of rest? While they were chasing dreams in the distance, what was she chasing after?

Her hands gripped tighter as she fisted the grass.

Her lips cracked open as she spoke, hesitantly. "Doesn't….doesn't this make you a little sad?"

Naruto's eyes opened when he realized the question was directed at him, and Sakura was momentarily shocked by the remarkable shade of blue they were, glazed with burning orange. He blinked, confusion apparent. "What do you mean, Sakura-chan? This is really nice…"

She swallowed the unexpected lump that had formed in her throat.

"Well yeah, it is …but I mean…" she bit the bottom of her lip. "That's what makes it so sad...because...you know it's not going to last forever. And I—I don't even know—"

_I don't even know if you'll be by my side the next time I look._

But she didn't say that. Words she spoke aloud often became curses.

Naruto turned back to look at the sky. "…if there will be another?" he finished, softly.

Sakura was a bit shocked. She hadn't expected Naruto to understand her thoughts so well, given the fact that he was a social retard on so many levels. But, she supposed, as she evaluated him out of the corner of her eye, he really was full of surprises. Full of life.

She let a bittersweet smile play on her lips and closed her eyes again. There was another silence that fell over them and she tried to drink it in—but again, there was the persistent nagging that this would be just another loss. She couldn't keep this peace, and even now the moment was drowned out by the buttery sickness in her stomach.

"Well, you know," Naruto said suddenly, causing Sakura to open her eyes. She knew that Sasuke was listening as well from his slight movement. Naruto shifted around in the grass and found a more comfortable position. "I get what you're saying. I feel that way, too, sometimes."

Her brow creased, but she didn't speak.

"But when I think about it, it's kinda like ramen."

Sakura slapped a hand to her forehead and groaned. "Naruto, I was trying to have a slightly serious—"

"Wait, Sakura-chan, lemme finish. It's like—you know, ramen's so good and all."

Sakura sighed and resisted the urge to roll her eyes, but held her tongue.

"And it's like, every time I eat it, I wonder if it'll be just as good the next time. Like, what happens if next time the old man puts in some weird spice and tries to poison me or something. Or what if it just doesn't taste good. There's so many things that could go wrong. Sometimes it gets me thinking while I'm eating."

His brow was slightly scrunched as he tried to communicate his feelings.

"Like, the next bowl's never gonna be exactly the same as the one before. Each time it will be a little bit different, so you don't know what to expect. It's kind of like now is a bowl of ramen."

A small smile broke out.

"You're just thinking like me, Sakura-chan, worrying about the future."

A pause as a bird cried in the distance, black and small and winging on the setting horizon.

"But then, after a while, I realized there's no use in doing that. Because if you keep worrying about if next time will taste just as good, then how are you going to enjoy how good _this _bowl of ramen tastes right now, you know? Cause when you think too much, it sorta ruins the taste…"

Sasuke snorted softly.

Sakura's sudden smile broke into clear laughter. Naruto looked at her wide-eyed, as it rang about the clearing, setting a flock of birds into the sky. She laughed at his puzzled expression even more, laughing until there were tiny precious tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

She looked at Naruto, the smile reaching wide across her face.

"Er…is something wrong, Sakura-chan?" he asked hesitantly, scratching the back of his head.

She laughed more and shook her head.

"Nope, nothing's wrong. You're just incredible, Naruto."

The smile remained on her lips as she stared out to the sky again, her green eyes clear and unclouded.

Naruto glowed at her praise. "That's right! Finally, my Sakura-chan's come to acknowledge my amazing-ness! I'm so happy!"

Sasuke let out another snort. "Dobe, you're ridiculous."

Naruto shot into an upright position. "What was that, Sasuke-teme?! You wanna say that again?!"

"I said, you're ridiculous."

"Why I oughta--!!"

Sakura giggled as Naruto leapt up to pounce on Sasuke. Kakashi suddenly shut the orange book and appeared before them.

"Now, now, children, let's settle down. We've already all been working hard today, so we shouldn't waste our energy on these little quarrels…And really, aren't we getting a bit old for this?"

"Shut up, Kakashi-sensei!! You didn't even hard word today! And besides, did you hear what Sasuke-teme said to me?!?"

"Hn," replied Sasuke as he successfully evaded one of Naruto's wildly thrashing arms.

"Don't 'hn' me, you bastard!!!" screeched Naruto, preparing to launch himself at the Uchiha. Kakashi sighed and placed a hand on Naruto's unruly spikes.

"Why don't we all go and enjoy a nice bowl of ramen?" suggested Kakashi. Naruto immediately focused his attention on Kakashi.

"YEAH!! Let's GO!! Your treat, Kakashi-sensei!!!"

With that, Naruto sped off in the direction of the ramen stand, leaving behind a trail of dust. Sasuke rolled his eyes and began to walk coolly after.

Sakura was still smiling widely as she watched the scene unfold. Kakashi turned to her, offering a hand to pull her up. She took it and stood, wiping a few blades of grass off the front of her dress.

"Boys," he sighed, gracing her with a crinkly-eyed smile. "Well, at least I have one reasonable, female student."

Sakura punched him lightly in the arm. "Right, Kakashi-sensei."

"Though, you know," Kakashi said, as he began to leisurely follow the two boys. "Naruto can be right sometimes."

Sakura stood, watching the figures of her teammates before her. The three of them walking towards the sunset, towards another horizon, towards another dream. She ran to catch up with Kakashi.

She'd be there to share those moments with them. She'd make _sure_ of it.

-

Ahahah...incredibly sappy...setting suns and all. But I think this piece was more structured than most of my others, because I actually had a faint notion of what I wanted to say XD


End file.
